There are just so many things to be writing, and never enough time to do them. I'm getting into the second book in my trilogy for Montlake. This one is entitled NEVER TRUST A PIRATE, which sounds like it's a little too cute for me, except it came directly from the mss. of the first book (which was called AFTER THE STORM, but now, to keep a theme going is NEVER KISS A RAKE. The third will be NEVER MARRY A VISCOUNT.) I'm thirty pages in -- once I get going I'll get going fast. Maddy hasn't even set eyes on my swashbuckling former pirate (she thinks he's an old man). Once that happens the good stuff starts.
One problem I'm running into with these books is that my heroines go into service in the households of the heroes, in order to find out whether said heroes had anything to do with their father's death. Well, it's a lovely idea combining the whole upstairs/downstairs/Downton Abby vibe, but when you're masquerading as a maid you can't give the hero the kind of shit my heroes usually deserve from my heroines. Nor can they engage in much banter or flirtation, not and continue the servant/master relationship. The whole thing is very tricky.
Fortunately in this case my hero, the former pirate, was a pickpocket street rat (and no, he isn't the long lost heir to a title, he really is a street rat) so he's not going to make a fuss about being treated with proper respect. In fact, while on board ship he's used to command and comfortable with it, on land the idea of servants waiting on him makes him feel a bit skeevy. After all, the people waiting on him are of a higher class than his own family, and it's unsettling.
He's also got a duplicitous fiancee who's causing trouble. I'm not sure whether to fob her off on someone or make her really bad. I could let the bad guy kill her, just to keep things interesting.
Usually I like to go over to the pool that's about half an hour away and do water walking while I think about the book. It's a great way to brainstorm, and the drive over and back helps as well. Right now our cars are being wonky so I decided to just keep working, maybe do a little more cleaning (because God knows I live in chaos). We're getting another blizzard this weekend so it's a good time to stay put, make some soup and fresh bread and finish reading the RITA books.
All in all, life in the north country (northern Vermont) is good. It's an excellent place to be a writer -- everything's too far away and it's too cold to stay outdoors much.
Back to work. I'll let you know if I figure a way around the banter/flirtation/hot little touches of hostility problem. I'd better.
